


Beyond the Fog

by WolfandOwl



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Alternate Universe - No BAU, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, M/M, Minor Character Death, Past Abuse, Sorry if they are ooc, Tobias/Spencer is breif
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-22
Updated: 2018-01-22
Packaged: 2019-03-08 06:47:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13452744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfandOwl/pseuds/WolfandOwl
Summary: In an alternate universe where Aaron Hotchner never joined the FBI, he finds himself living the simple life and working at a factory - until the zombie apocalypse happens. He and his new ally, Spencer Reid (Spencer didn't join the FBI either), must traverse this new and dangerous reality, while coming to terms with their feelings for each other.





	Beyond the Fog

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fanfiction, so go easy on me! I appreciate all feedback and suggestions.

There is no one around now. Just the heavy fog and the putrid stench of decay. Aaron could remember when he would see this kind of thing in horror movies and laugh because he knew it could never happen. He had never been more wrong. It was just a normal day when all of this started. Aaron was at work, where he made television trays (it was easy work and he wanted something easy after the untimely death of his wife), when he heard the screaming. He worked in a bad side of town, so screaming was not all that unusual, but this was different. There were multiple screams, and they were continuous. If he was smart, he would have run, but curiosity got the best of him.  
As he exited the factory, he immediately saw chaos. Cars were flipped over, and fires raged. 

“What’s going on?” He asked a man that was running by.

“I have no idea. All I know is that people are going crazy, and it’s getting dangerous”. 

Aaron thanked the man and continued the short walk down the street to his home. ‘Why is this happening?’ He thought. ‘With all this doomsday stuff that cycles around every few years, I kind of wonder sometimes’. He had yet to see any of the “crazy” people, and he was starting to question what that man was talking about. After entering his house, Aaron sat on the edge of his bed and questioned if he should go back to work. Suddenly, his radio buzzed to life and answered his question. 

“This is an emergency broadcast. Do not leave your homes. An unknown cause for extreme rage and aggression is sweeping across the United States. Repeat: do not leave your homes”. 

Okay, now he was concerned. He didn’t have much food and he knew that he would eventually have to venture out to find more.  
Across the city, which was in just as bad of shape, Spencer huddled in his bedroom, terrified to open the door. His significant other, Tobias, had come home from work, as usual, but his behavior was far from normal. He was sweating all over and seemed to be ill. 

“Are you feeling alright?” He had asked, before Tobias had collapsed on the floor. 

Spencer had tried to call 911, but the line was busy. He was going to stay put and try to tend to Tobias. That was until Tobias stood up, a blank look across his face. 

“Tobias?” Spencer asked. “Are you okay?” 

Tobias groaned and lunged at him. Spencer screamed and practically flew up the stairs, locking his door behind him. 

“Help!” He yelled. 

Now he was locked in there, listening to Tobias bang on the door, grunting and groaning. He had to get out of here, but how? He could escape through the window, but that would be a two-story drop, and he couldn’t open the door because Tobias was out there. Suddenly, a voice thundered up from downstairs. “I’m coming! Don’t worry!” Banging from downstairs carried through the hallway and he heard someone slump against the door. He jumped as the door was kicked open. 

“Are you injured?” 

“Not that I know of,” Spencer whimpered. 

“Have you been bitten?” 

“Bitten?” Spencer was starting to think that this guy might be crazy. 

“Yes,” Aaron deadpanned, as if he was bored of the situation. 

“Not that I know of,” Spencer replied, almost scared of what the man’s reaction would be if he had said yes. 

The strange man stared at him for a few seconds before he beckoned him over. “Come on. We have to get out of here”. 

“What about Tobias?” 

“He was one of them. I put him down”. 

Spencer couldn’t believe this. What was going on? “What do you mean you ‘put him down?!’ He was my boyfriend! He would never try to hurt me!” 

“Well, that thing wasn’t your boyfriend anymore, and he would have killed you had I not come along”. 

Spencer glared at the man as tears streamed down his face and he knelt to cradle Tobias’s head. “I have to bury him,” Spencer whispered. 

“I’ll help you. And I’m Aaron Hotchner by the way”. 

“I’m Spencer Reid”. 

Aaron held Tobias’s shoulders while Spencer held his legs, as they lowered him into the grave they had just dug. Spencer then picked up a shovel and began to cover him with dirt. As he lifted the shovel with a particularly heavy load of dirt, Spencer’s shirt sleeve rose up to reveal a deep purple bruise. Aaron stared at it, unsure if he should say anything. As his eyes combed over the rest of Spencer’s body, he noticed another bruise where his shirt was riding up around his too thin stomach. Aaron’s fingers tightened almost painfully around his shovel of their own accord. 

“Aaron?” Aaron snapped out of his thoughts when he heard the trembling voice call his name. “Can we get out of here? This place is giving me the creeps”. 

Aaron silently studied Spencer, mulling over if he should ask him where he got the bruises. He finally nodded and guided Spencer around the house and away from the grave. He kept his mouth shut. It wasn’t any of his business.  
CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM Aaron was terrified. He was holed up in his house, nice and cozy, until some jerk flew through his sliding glass door! 

“What the hell, man?” 

He shouted. But the strange man stumbled toward him in an almost drunken stupor. 

“Get away from me! Are you listening?” 

The man suddenly grabbed onto his shirt and snapped his teeth at him. Aaron shoved him off and ran through the now broken glass door. As he ran down the street, more of those things started to emerge. They looked like people but didn’t act like them at all. They were slow and clumsy, and acted like ravenous animals. Aaron quickly learned that one on its own was slow, but in a group, they could easily corner someone. He still didn’t know what was happening, but he knew he needed to look for normal people; the kind that didn’t try to eat him. 

“Stop. Please”. 

Aaron froze and slowly turned around. A man was slowly limping toward him. The man looked suspicious, and Aaron turned to run away. 

“Wait!” 

Aaron felt sympathy for the poor man and approached him. He was clutching his arm to his chest, which was wrapped in a bloody bandage. 

“What happened?” Aaron gasped. 

“I was bitten. Don’t get bitten! You’ll turn and be one of them!” 

Okay, now he was really confused. He slowly backed away and sprinted in the other direction. After he was sure he was far enough away from the man, he stopped. 

“What have I done?” Aaron whispered to himself. 

He had just left that innocent man out there to die. But he was scared, so he couldn’t blame himself for his decisions. Aaron started to run again. He had to get somewhere, anywhere, safe.

He had run across most of the city when he heard it. Someone was calling for help! He pinpointed the house, and tried the door, which was unlocked. It was dark inside, but Aaron could hear one of those things groaning, and a man screaming. 

“I’m coming! Don’t worry!” Aaron shouted, grabbing a knife from the kitchen. 

As he was climbing the stairs, one of those things became visible. It was clawing at a door. Aaron slowly approached it and stabbed it in the back. It flailed around and attempted to grab at him.  
“Oh, hell!” Aaron groaned, then promptly pulled out the knife and stabbed it in the head. The thing stopped moving and slumped against the door, which he promptly kicked open.  
CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM Now, Aaron and Spencer walked down the street, desperately searching for a safe place to hole up for the night. Gradually, as they moved from city to city, less and less people were around, but more of those things appeared. Luckily, they never noticed the pair and kept their distance. 

“What should we call them?” 

“Hm?” Spencer hummed. 

“Those things. What are they called?” 

“Zombie seems too cliché. The Infected, maybe?” 

“Sounds good”. Aaron absentmindedly replied. 

Spencer chuckled at that. Aaron found it bizarre that Spencer could find humor in this. 

“Do you think this will blow over?” Spencer whispered, uncertainty laced in his voice. 

“I honestly don’t know. The emergency broadcast said not to leave our houses, so it must be pretty serious. I wonder if this is happening everywhere”. 

“I hope not”. 

Disappointment after disappointment plagued the pair as they searched for a safe hide out. 

“We have to stop for the night.” Aaron finally sighed. “It will be dark soon and it will be too dangerous to travel”. 

“But I’ve never spent the night outside,” Spencer cut in, looking legitimately terrified. 

“Seriously? Your parents never took you camping?” 

Spencer shook his head.

“How old are you?” Aaron asked. 

“Twenty,” Spencer replied, a question hanging in his tone of voice. “And you?” 

“Thirty-five”. 

Spencer stared at Aaron for a few seconds. 

“Wow”. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Aaron asked, slightly annoyed. 

“You don’t act like you’re thirty-five,” Spencer replied. 

Aaron sighed, irritated that Spencer said he didn’t act like his age and not that he didn’t look like his age and began collecting sticks from the ground to make a fire. 

“Just sit down and I’ll take care of everything”.

Aaron felt a growing sense of protectiveness for the boy and was beginning to care about his well-being. Spencer smiled and nodded eagerly, gingerly sitting on the ground, pulling his sweater tighter around him.

After successfully building a fire, Aaron sat down and beckoned Spencer over to him. Instead of sitting a few feet from him like Aaron had hoped, he sat right next to him, crowding uncomfortably close and leaning into his side. Aaron sat still for a moment, holding his breath to see if Spencer would decide he wanted to move. He didn’t. Aaron curled a protective arm around Spencer and the memory of the bruises on the boy’s pale skin bubbled to the surface of his mind. He had to say something. The poor kid was scared to death and the only person he seemed to show any feelings for had obviously abused him. He slowly dipped his head to look at the top of Spencer’s curly mop of hair and made up his mind.

“Hey kid, I know this isn’t any of my business, but where did those bruises come from?” 

Spencer pursed his lips and turned to look at Aaron, his face a mask of sadness. He was pretty sure that Aaron saw his bruises earlier, but he had hoped he wouldn’t say anything. 

“He had a bad temper. Sometimes he would come home from work after a bad day, and he would hit me. He would always apologize, and I always believed him. I guess it was my fault that it kept happening,” Spencer whispered. “I always tried to cover them up, like a dirty secret. I felt like if people saw them, they would think I was weak for not leaving”. 

Aaron was positive that this “he” was Tobias. 

Spencer jumped at the growl that bubbled up from Aaron’s throat. 

“Don’t you ever say that again. It is not your fault that you were abused. You’re a good kid, Spencer”. 

Spencer stared up at Aaron, taken aback by the outburst. He felt a warmth bubbling up in his chest for his new friend. 

“Thank you, Aaron. You’re the only person who’s ever said that”. 

Aaron was silent as he stared into the fire, but Spencer could feel his arm tighten around him. 

CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM

After a day or two of Aaron trudging along and Spencer gleefully swinging around a frying pan that he had found (he had insisted that it would be useful, and Aaron finally relented), Aaron finally turned to Spencer and asked, “how are you so cheery, kid? Everyone around us is dying”. 

“Yeah, the world may suck right now, but I’m not letting that ruin my day,” Spencer laughed, his bright smile almost melting Aaron’s face. “You should really lighten up a bit, Hotch! I’ve been with you for almost two days now and you haven’t smiled even once!” 

Aaron stared at Spencer like he had just sprouted wings. 

“Hotch? Where did that come from? And I’m sorry if I’m not excited that the Infected are trying to eat my face. And smiling takes too much effort.” He grumbled. 

“Actually, it takes about seventeen muscles to smile and forty-three to frown. And Hotch is a cool nickname. I should call you that all the time”. Spencer retorted, blinking innocently. 

“You just know that off the top of your head?” Aaron asked, ignoring the “cool” nickname comment. 

“Um, yeah,” Spencer scoffed, as if that was common knowledge. 

Aaron shook his head and continued onward. 

‘There’s no use in arguing with this guy,’ Aaron sighed to himself. 

He was pulled away from his thoughts when they came upon several cars on the desolate country road they had been traveling on. 

“I think it would be worth it to check these cars out,” he said as he nudged Spencer forward, who was attempting to back away. “There could be supplies in them, and we can’t afford to pass it up”. 

Spencer gulped and shuffled after Aaron, still unsure of the situation. 

Aaron pulled open a car door (Spencer had picked the lock successfully without setting off the alarm) and began to sift through several plastic bags. 

“Keep a lookout while I look for things we can use. Maybe we could try to hotwire one of these cars”. 

Spencer nodded and began to weave through the cars, searching for any stray Infected. The coast looked clear. 

Caw! Caw! 

“Shit!” Spencer startled and stumbled backward, landing on the hood of a car and setting off the alarm. 

Aaron shot over at what seemed like supersonic speed to help him up. “Are you hurt?” He asked. 

Spencer shook his head but grabbed Aaron’s arm when he heard a groan from the other side of the car. He and Aaron slowly crept around the car and were met with the sight of an Infected. This was the first time Spencer had seen one “alive” so to speak, and it shocked him. It walked with a limp that threw it from side to side, and its eyes were glazed with an unnatural yellow color. He grimaced at the sight of its skin, which was missing in patches that appeared to be bitten off, and its teeth and gums were exposed. 

“…Cer! Spencer!” 

Spencer was jerked out of his thoughts by Aaron grabbing his arm. 

“Stand back!” 

Spencer flinched as Aaron plunged his knife into the Infected’s head. 

“You need to be more careful! You almost got yourself killed!” Aaron spat, anger rising up like bile in his throat. 

Tears sprang up in Spencer’s eyes, and he turned his back to Aaron, covering his mouth and trying to hold back a sob. Aaron was wracked with guilt as he laid a hand on Spencer’s shoulder. 

“Look, Spencer, I’m sorry. I just don’t know what I would do if I lost you”. Aaron jumped as Spencer spun around and enveloped him in a hug. 

“I’m sorry too. I’ll try to be more careful. But we should get out of here. The noise will draw more”. 

Aaron nodded and grabbed the supplies he had gathered, before they continued down the road to their unknown destination.  
About a half an hour later, Aaron was startled when Spencer grabbed his arm. 

“Look, a barn! Let’s check it out”. 

Aaron stared at the barn with uncertainty. It looked like the perfect place for a serial killer’s hideout. But being inside a creepy barn was better than being out in the open. Aaron slowly pulled the door of the barn open. 

“Okay kid, I’ll check out this side and you use your… frying pan… to check that side”. 

Spencer nodded, ecstatic that he’d get to use his unconventional weapon. All was well until Spencer yelped in surprise. A hand had covered his mouth and a voice whispered in his ear: “make another sound and you’ll wish you hadn’t”. 

That wasn’t Aaron’s voice. Aaron’s voice was low and smooth, but this voice was gravely, like someone who had smoked too many cigarettes. Luckily for Spencer, his attacker was unaware of his frying pan. He gripped it tightly and swung it behind his head, wincing at the loud ‘clunk’ that followed before his attacker slumped to the floor. 

“Hotch?” He cried. 

No answer. 

“Aaron, don’t leave me!” 

Still no answer. 

Spine splitting fear shot through his body as he realized that Aaron was gone. He spent the next ten minutes searching the barn for Aaron, to no avail. He screamed when someone grabbed his arm. 

“Shut up, and don’t you dare hit me again,” the man gruffed as he pulled the frying pan out of Spencer’s hand and tied a rope around his wrists. 

Spencer nodded and was led out to a rusty old car. 

“Get in”. 

His kidnapper’s hands dug painfully into his wrists and images of Tobias came flooding back. 

“Don’t touch me!” Spencer cried as he began to struggle. 

His words died on his tongue when he felt a sharp pain in his side. He looked down to see the knife leaving his flesh and blood soaking his sweater. He gasped when he saw Aaron slumped in the back seat of the car and winced when he collided with Aaron’s body as he was thrown on the cracked seat. He yelped when a burlap sack was placed over his head.  
CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM*CM Aaron slowly blinked his eyes open. All he could remember was someone grabbing him, and the next thing he knew, he was here. He glanced around to see where “here” was. He appeared to be on the outskirts of a forest, but he could see skyscrapers in the distance and a fog was rolling in. He shuffled around in the car seat and tried to get his hands out of the ropes that restrained his wrists. After some struggling, he was able to break free. Aaron tried to control the shivers that were starting to consume his body, but it was no use. Suddenly, he heard a pitiful whimper coming from beside him. It was dark in the car, so he didn’t notice the body lying next to him at first. He reached out and touched a familiar thin wrist. He reached up and felt around for the lights on the roof of the car, which thankfully still worked. Aaron cried out in relief when he was met with the sight of a battered and bruised, but still alive, Spencer. He carefully pulled the hood off and untied his wrists. 

“Spencer? Are you alright?” 

“I think my arm is broken,” Spencer murmured. 

“Alright. We need to try to get help”. 

Aaron pulled Spencer’s good arm around his shoulders and they began to walk around, but minutes soon turned to hours, and Aaron was getting desperate. Spencer was starting to act strange, and it was worrying. It started with his head lolling to the side, occasionally snapping back up, as if he was trying to fight off falling asleep. Then his weight on Aaron’s shoulder gradually increased until Aaron was supporting almost all of Spencer’s weight. 

Eventually, Aaron stopped and maneuvered Spencer until he was making eye contact with him. 

“Spencer, what’s wrong?” Aaron asked, his voice deep and stern, almost as if it was warning Spencer that there would be dire consequences if he lied. 

Spencer focused his eyes on Aaron, but his gaze was foggy, as if his mind was somewhere else. 

“Spencer!” Aaron tried again, shaking him by the shoulders. “You’re scaring me!” 

Spencer wordlessly reached his hand down to his side, his arm shaking violently. Aaron’s eyes followed the arm like a cat watching a mouse, and he gasped when Spencer’s hand returned covered in blood. 

“Dammit, Spencer! Why didn’t you tell me about this earlier? We could have put pressure on it!” 

Aaron silently cursed himself. He should have noticed that Spencer was bleeding. He had seen the blood on his own pants, but he thought it was his own blood, because those men in the barn had roughed him up quite a bit. Aaron gently set Spencer down and ripped the sleeve off his shirt, preparing to use it to put pressure on the wound. He gently lifted Spencer’s sweater, wincing when he grunted in discomfort. He had to hold back tears at the sight of it; the skin around the wound was an angry red and blood was continuously seeping out. 

“Is this a stab wound?” 

His suspicions were confirmed when Spencer silently nodded. Aaron wanted to say that it looked like the knife had nicked a blood vessel, but he kept his mouth shut. That wouldn’t be the best thing for Spencer to hear right now. 

“I’m going to put pressure on it. This is going to hurt”. 

At Spencer’s curt nod, he quickly pushed the fabric against the wound, gritting his teeth at the pained wheeze that escaped Spencer’s mouth. He quickly glanced around, scanning over the buildings to see if any place looked like it would have medical supplies. His head snapped back to Spencer when he let out a pained whimper. 

“I’m so cold,” Spencer stuttered out. 

“No! No, Spencer, you have to stay with me. We’re going to get help. Just hold on,” Aaron cried, tears beginning to slip from the corners of his eyes. 

“Hotch, it’s okay,” Spencer groaned out. “I just want to sit here with you”.

Aaron sobbed and grabbed Spencer’s hand. 

“Come on. We’re going to look some more. There must be something we can use to help you”. 

“Hotch, look at me.”

Aaron stopped and stared into Spencer’s eyes like his life depended on it.

“There they are. Your eyes are so stunning. I could look into them for an eternity,” Spencer whispered, tracing his finger over Aaron’s cheek.

Aaron slowly leaned down and kissed Spencer, relishing in the warm pressure of his lips. Spencer looped his arms around Aaron’s neck and played with the hair at the nape of his neck. After a few seconds, Aaron pulled back and effortlessly stood up with Spencer in his arms, carrying him bridal style. Spencer was the only person in Aaron’s life that he would call a friend, and he would even go as far as to say that he had romantic feelings for him. And Aaron was afraid he was going to lose him. His worries only increased when Spencer laid his head on his shoulder instead of protesting. The Spencer he knew would have demanded to be put down. 

After wandering around for a few more minutes, Aaron sighed with relief at the sight of a drug store. 

“Thank God,” he whispered to himself. 

After peeking inside to make sure there weren’t any Infected inside, he braced Spencer against his chest and kicked the door open. Desperately, Aaron walked as fast as he could down the aisles without jostling Spencer. Finally, he found a single first aid kit at the end of an aisle. He sat Spencer down and practically ripped the kit open, searching for gauze and stitches. Aaron grunted in frustration at the kit’s lack of anything that he could use to sew up the wound. He gently turned Spencer’s face towards his and made eye contact with him. 

“Keep pressure on it. I’m going to look for a sewing kit”. 

Spencer gently nodded his head and replaced Aaron’s hand on the wound with his own. Satisfied that he had done what he asked, Aaron turned and desperately followed the signs to the aisle containing “arts and crafts”. Luckily, there were several small sewing kits still on the shelf. He grabbed it and sprinted back to the aisle that he left Spencer in. A smile began to bloom on Aaron’s face when he saw Spencer, but quickly died when he noticed that his arm was limp at his side, no longer putting pressure on his wound. Aaron knelt next to Spencer and gently shook him. 

“Spencer,” he whispered. 

Spencer’s face stayed still. Aaron’s heart sank as he reached for Spencer’s neck, feeling for a pulse. He cried with relief when he felt one. It was weak, but it was there. 

“Okay, kid, I’m going to sew you up now,” Aaron whispered, trying to hold back his tears. 

He reached into the sewing kit and pulled out the biggest needle he could find, before threading the string through it. Quickly, he stuck the needle into Spencer’s skin and gently sewed up the wound until the skin was completely back together. Aaron glanced around to make sure they were still alone in the store and sat down next to Spencer. He was starting to get tired, and before he knew it, he had fallen asleep. 

Aaron’s head snapped up at the snore that had escaped his mouth. His eyes shot around, and his body tensed, preparing to fight. 

“Shit, I must have fallen asleep,” he whispered to himself. 

He glanced down at Spencer, only to see that his eyes were still closed. He felt Spencer’s neck, and to his horror, he felt that his pulse was thready and weak. 

“Come on, we need to find someone who can help us. You need food and water”. 

Aaron gently picked up Spencer and gasped at how cold he was. He ran out of the store with the boy in his arms. 

“Help!” He yelled. 

After receiving no response, he cursed and clutched Spencer close to him, quickly heading down the street in search of anywhere that seemed even remotely inhabited. Spencer’s skin felt like ice against him, and his weight was beginning to tax on Aaron’s back. The telltale groaning of the Infected was slowly growing closer, and Aaron couldn’t run as fast while carrying Spencer. He needed to find someone, anyone, to help them. 

But there was no one around now. Just the heavy fog and the putrid stench of decay.


End file.
